René Barbera Tenor

René Barbera is a graduate of San Francisco Opera’s Merola Opera Program and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center, Chicago. He is the sole recipient of all three top awards of the Plácido Domingo Operalia Competition in 2011 (Opera, Zarzuela and Audience Awards).

He made his professional debut as Elvino (La Sonnambula) with the Washington Opera Concert, Ernesto (Don Pasquale) at Chicago Opera, Count Almaviva (The Barber of Seville) at Michigan Opera Theater and Theater in Moscow, Don Ramiro (La Cenerentola) in Seattle and Los Angeles, Rodrigo di Dhu (La Donna del lago) in Santa Fe. He sang Don Ramiro, Count Almaviva and Iopas (Les Troyens) in San Francisco, Tonio (La Fille du régiment) at Greensboro Opera, Count Almaviva in Los Angeles, Giannetto (La Gazza ladra) and Narciso ( Il turco in Italia) in Pesaro, the Italian singer (Der Rosenkavalier) in Chicago.

He made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York debut as Lindoro (L'italiana in Algeri), at Deutsche Oper in Berlin as Edgardo di Ravenswood (Lucia di Lammermoor), at Teatro alla Scala in Milan and Staatsoper in Vienna as Ernesto, at Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich as Don Ramiro, and at Dutch National Opera as Count Almaviva.

His repertoire also includes the roles of Lord Percy (Anna Bolena, Rome Opera), Alfredo Germont (La Traviata, Dallas Opera, Austin Opera, Semperoper Dresden, and Teatro alla Scala Milan), Nemorino (L’elisir d’amore, Teatro alla Scala), Lord Arturo Talbot (I Puritani, Washington Opera), Don Ramiro (Tokyo) and Nadir (Les Pêcheurs de perles, Dallas).

Last season, he portrayed Count Almaviva in Budapest, the Duke of Mantua (Rigoletto) in Dallas, Fenton (Falstaff) at La Fenice, Venice, and Elvino at Opéra royal de Wallonie.

At the Paris Opera: I Puritani (Lord Arturo Talbot), 2013; The Barber of Seville (Count Almaviva), 2014, 2018, 2022